Merrion Centre, Leeds
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The Merrion Centre is a
shopping centre A shopping center in American English, shopping centre in English in the Commonwealth of Nations, Commonwealth English (see American and British English spelling differences#-re, -er, spelling differences), shopping complex, shopping arcade, ...
located in the
Arena Quarter Arena Quarter (sometimes referred to as Arena Qtr) is a mixed city centre development with residential, retail and office developments in Leeds, West Yorkshire, England. It is located in Leeds city centre and the area is best known for housing ...
area of
Leeds, West Yorkshire Leeds is a City status in the United Kingdom, city in West Yorkshire, England. It is the largest settlement in Yorkshire and the administrative centre of the City of Leeds , City of Leeds Metropolitan Borough, which is the List of English dist ...
, England. Since opening in 1964, the centre has been owned and managed by Town Centre Securities. Originally open air, the centre had a roof installed during the 1970s.


Shops and amenities

The Merrion Centre is an early example of a
mixed-use development Mixed use is a type of urban development, urban design, urban planning and/or a zoning classification that blends multiple uses, such as residential, commercial, cultural, institutional, or entertainment, into one space, where those functions ...
including offices, car parking, retail (including a
Morrisons Wm Morrison Supermarkets Limited, trading as Morrisons, is the List of supermarket chains in the United Kingdom, fifth largest supermarket chain in the United Kingdom. As of 2021, the company had 497 supermarkets across England, Wales and Sco ...
supermarket) and entertainment including a
bowling alley A bowling alley (also known as a bowling center, bowling lounge, bowling arena, or historically bowling club) is a facility where the sport of bowling is played. It can be a dedicated facility or part of another, such as a clubhouse or dwelling ...
, a
nightclub A nightclub or dance club is a club that is open at night, usually for drinking, dancing and other entertainment. Nightclubs often have a Bar (establishment), bar and discotheque (usually simply known as disco) with a dance floor, laser lighti ...
and several
public houses A pub (short for public house) is in several countries a drinking establishment licensed to serve alcoholic drinks for consumption on the premises. The term first appeared in England in the late 17th century, to differentiate private ho ...
. Currently most retail in the centre is aimed more towards the budget end of the market which means the centre is especially popular with
working-class The working class is a subset of employees who are compensated with wage or salary-based contracts, whose exact membership varies from definition to definition. Members of the working class rely primarily upon earnings from wage labour. Most c ...
customers and students. The Merrion Market area featured a range of independent stalls, shops and cafés ranging from mainstream but downmarket to idiosyncratic, but was closed to make room for The New Front, an area backing onto the arena which contains restaurants, cafès and leisure facilities. Since the pedestrianisation of Briggate and the opening of new shopping centres such as
Victoria Quarter Victoria Leeds is a shopping district and leisure area in central Leeds, comprising the 1990 Victoria Quarter, an arcaded complex of restored 19th-century and contemporary shopping arcades, and the 2016 Victoria Gate development. Notable for ...
,
Trinity Leeds Trinity Leeds is a shopping and leisure centre in the city centre of Leeds, England, named after the adjacent 18th-century Holy Trinity Church. Developed by Land Securities and designed by Chapman Taylor, it opened on 21 March 2013, with ove ...
and The Light, the Merrion Centre has seen a transition from high-end retail chains to more utilitarian and functional chains. The main anchor tenant is
Morrisons Wm Morrison Supermarkets Limited, trading as Morrisons, is the List of supermarket chains in the United Kingdom, fifth largest supermarket chain in the United Kingdom. As of 2021, the company had 497 supermarkets across England, Wales and Sco ...
. Other large retailers within the complex include,
Iceland Iceland is a Nordic countries, Nordic island country between the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic and Arctic Oceans, on the Mid-Atlantic Ridge between North America and Europe. It is culturally and politically linked with Europe and is the regi ...
,
Superdrug Superdrug Stores plc (trading as Superdrug) is a health and beauty retailer in the United Kingdom, and the second largest behind Boots UK. The company is owned by AS Watson (Health & Beauty UK) Limited which is part of the A.S. Watson Group. ...
and The Works. The centre had originally included an Odeon Cinema when it opened, however this closed in 1977 following a screening of ''
Gone with the Wind Gone with the Wind most often refers to: * Gone with the Wind (novel), ''Gone with the Wind'' (novel), a 1936 novel by Margaret Mitchell * Gone with the Wind (film), ''Gone with the Wind'' (film), the 1939 adaptation of the novel Gone with the Wind ...
''. It remains empty and unused to this day only opening occasionally for events such as
Heritage Open Days Heritage Open Days (also known as HODs) is an annual celebration of England's history and culture that allows visitors free access to heritage sites and community events that are either not usually open to the public, would normally charge an ent ...
. Until recently, the cinema inside was notable in the fact that other than the removal of the seating, it remained unchanged since closing, with original operating manuals and film posters in place and was admired by fans of 1960s and 1970s culture. However, all areas of the cinema have since been stripped back to the bare structure. The ground floor entrance is opposite the entrance to Morrisons and has been blocked up and replaced with
cash machines An automated teller machine (ATM) is an electronic telecommunications device that enables customers of financial institutions to perform financial transactions, such as cash withdrawals, deposits, funds transfers, balance inquiries or account ...
. One of the nightclubs within The Merrion Centre was the "Bar Phono" (originally known as
Le Phonographique Le Phonographique (often called the Phono) was a gothic nightclub located underneath the Merrion Centre in Leeds. Founded under the name the WigWam club, the venue's 1979 rebranding led to it becoming a location frequented by members of both th ...
), widely reputed to be the birthplace of the Gothic subculture. A pillar was located in the middle of the dancefloor is said to have inspired the unique goth two steps forward two steps back dance. The centre features one of two examples of Rowland Emett's kinetic sculptures, "The Featherstone-Kite Openwork Basketweave Mark Two Gentleman’s Flying Machine", and other several other Centre-owned artworks by the artist are periodically displayed in the main thoroughfare. There are plaques in the floor at each entrance stating "Private property, no public right of way" to prevent the walkthoughs becoming public footpaths.


History

When opened in 1964, the ''
Yorkshire Evening Post The ''Yorkshire Evening Post'' (''YEP'') is a regional daily newspaper covering the City of Leeds. Founded in 1890 it is published by Yorkshire Post Newspapers, National World. Despite being having coverage and being sold across West Yorkshire ...
'' said the centre emulated what every successful large town and city wanted to build. The builders were Parkinsons and the structural engineers William V. Zinn & Associates. Parkinsons described the centre as "the most advanced shopping and entertainment centre in the country" and cost £3m to build."Britain's most advanced shopping centre", ''The Times'', 6 November 1964, p. 6. The former
Barclays Barclays PLC (, occasionally ) is a British multinational universal bank, headquartered in London, England. Barclays operates as two divisions, Barclays UK and Barclays International, supported by a service company, Barclays Execution Services ...
Bank on the front of the Merrion Centre was converted into 'PRYZM' which has become a popular Leeds nightclub. Much of The Merrion Centre remains almost unchanged since its construction. With many other cities renovating their equivalents of The Merrion Centre (the reconstruction of the Bullring, Birmingham, the
Arndale Centre Arndale Centres were the first "American style" malls to be built in the United Kingdom. In total, Arndale Property Trust built 23 Arndale Centres in the United Kingdom, and three in Australia. The first opened in Jarrow, County Durham, in 196 ...
in
Manchester Manchester () is a city and the metropolitan borough of Greater Manchester, England. It had an estimated population of in . Greater Manchester is the third-most populous metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, with a population of 2.92&nbs ...
being partially rebuilt and Eldon Square in
Newcastle Upon Tyne Newcastle upon Tyne, or simply Newcastle ( , Received Pronunciation, RP: ), is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city and metropolitan borough in Tyne and Wear, England. It is England's northernmost metropolitan borough, located o ...
being renovated), Leeds city centre's largest shopping centre was beginning to look dated. In June 2007 renovation began, concentrating on the western side of the centre. Since then additional developments have taken place including a new lighting scheme to the "new front" (launched 2015). In 2012 the Merrion Superstore market hall closed and opened up as Pure Gym in 2013. In summer 2016, The Merrion Centre was undergoing major refurbishment. The western side of the centre was being extended to accommodate new refurbished council offices, as well as new restaurants and retail units. New tenants had moved in such as a new
Sainsbury's Local Sainsbury's Local (a trading name of Sainsbury's Supermarkets Ltd) is a chain of 820 convenience shops operated by the UK's second largest supermarket chain Sainsbury's. History In 1998, Sainsbury's piloted its first Local shop in Hammersmith. ...
, and the centre's Morrisons supermarket has been rebranded to fit the company's new corporate image, with major extension and refurbishment inside. Woolworths' relocation to the Merrion Centre, from
Briggate Briggate is a pedestrianised principal shopping street in Leeds city centre, England. Historically it was the main street, leading north from Leeds Bridge, and housed markets, merchant's houses and other business premises. It contains many h ...
(now the
House of Fraser House of Fraser (rebranding to Frasers) is a British department store chain with 23 locations across the United Kingdom and 2 in Ireland, part of Frasers Group. It was established in Glasgow, Scotland, in 1849 as Arthur and Fraser. By 1891, it ...
) in the early 1990s provided the centre with another major retailer and increased footfall. The Morrisons in the centre is the main supermarket in the
city centre A city centre, also known as an urban core, is the Commerce, commercial, Culture, cultural and often the historical, Politics, political, and geographic heart of a city. The term "city centre" is primarily used in British English, and closely e ...
and has seen a surge in custom since the building of many city centre flats in the property boom of the 2000s. However most of these are towards the southern end of the city centre, and for them the Morrisons in The Penny Hill Centre,
Hunslet Hunslet () is an inner-city area in south Leeds, West Yorkshire, England. It is southeast of the Leeds city centre, city centre and has an industrial past. It is situated in the Hunslet and Riverside (ward), Hunslet and Riverside ward of Lee ...
is nearer and also offers free parking. A mock-Georgian wing of the shopping centre was never fully occupied since the centre opened, and this wing was closed off in January 2016 to allow building work on the western end of the centre. The Merrion Centre had a pedestrian subway which linked it to the Woodhouse Lane Car Park, Millennium Square and
Leeds Beckett University Leeds Beckett University (LBU), formerly known as Leeds Metropolitan University (LMU) and before that as Leeds Polytechnic, is a public university in Leeds, West Yorkshire, England. It has campuses in the Leeds city centre, city centre and Hea ...
. This was closed in 2000, and as of September 2017 the open air subway section has been filled in with compacted rubble as part of the centre redevelopment scheme. The Fab Cafe, a cult TV and movie themed bar always popular with students, occupied a spot on Woodhouse Lane at the north-west corner of the Merrion Centre from 1998 to 2015. It also had a door opening to the open air subway junction, which i remember using in 1978 when the bar had a previous name. In the 2010s the part of the building on the Eastern elevation known as the '50p' or the 'thrup'ny bit' due to its unique shape was demolished. Around the same time the 'Merrion Hotel' was acquired by chain 'Ibis' and rebranded with its name reflecting its proximity to the
First Direct Arena The Leeds Arena (currently known as the first direct bank arena for sponsorship reasons) is an entertainment-focused indoor arena located in the Arena Quarter of Leeds, West Yorkshire, England. It is the first in the United Kingdom to have a fa ...
. Following the construction of Leeds Arena, the Merrion Centre was rezoned as part of the newly formed
Arena Quarter Arena Quarter (sometimes referred to as Arena Qtr) is a mixed city centre development with residential, retail and office developments in Leeds, West Yorkshire, England. It is located in Leeds city centre and the area is best known for housing ...
of
Leeds city centre Leeds city centre is the central business district of Leeds, West Yorkshire, England. It is roughly bounded by the Leeds Inner Ring Road, Inner Ring Road to the north and the River Aire to the south and can be divided into several quarters. A ...
.


See also

* Architecture in Leeds


References

*http://www.yorkshireeveningpost.co.uk/news/video-leeds-merrion-centre-bucks-trend-to-record-best-period-in-50-years-1-8322054


External links


Official Merrion Centre website
{{Shopping centres in Yorkshire and the Humber Shopping centres in Leeds Shopping malls established in 1964